Powerful 6.3 magnitude earthquake shakes northern Afghanistan, killing at least 20 people

Kabul: A powerful, 6.3 magnitude earthquake shook northern Afghanistan before dawn Monday, killing at least 20 people and injuring more than 300 others, a health official said. The US Geological Survey said the quake's epicentre was located 22 kilometres west-southwest of the town of Khulm, and that it struck at 12:59 am at a depth of 28 kilometres. It struck at 12:59 am Monday local time, the USGS said. Sharafat Zaman, a spokesperson for the Ministry of Public Health, said at least 10 people died and 260 were injured in the earthquake.Yousaf Hammad, a spokesman for Afghanistan's disaster management agency, said most of the injured suffered minor wounds and were discharged after receiving initial treatment. In Kabul, the Ministry of Defence announced that rescue and emergency aid teams have reached the areas affected by last night's earthquake in the provinces of Balkh and Samangan, which suffered the most damage, and have begun rescue operations, including transporting the injured and assisting affected families.

According to the Afghan officials, the earthquake was also felt in Mazar-e-Sharif, the capital of northern Balkh province. In Mazar-e-Sharif, footage on social media showed that the earthquake caused some damage to the historic Blue Mosque. Several bricks fell from the walls but the mosque remained intact. The centuries-old site is one of Afghanistan's most revered religious landmarks and a major gathering place during Islamic and cultural festivals. The quake was felt in the capital, Kabul, and several other provinces in Afghanistan. Afghanistan has been rattled by a series of earthquakes in recent years and the impoverished country often faces difficulty in responding to such natural disasters, especially in remote regions. Buildings in Afghanistan tend to be low-rise constructions, mostly of concrete and brick, with homes in rural and outlying areas made from mud bricks and wood. Many are poorly built. A magnitude 6.0 earthquake on August 31, 2025 in eastern Afghanistan near the border with Pakistan killed more than 2,200 people. On October 7, 2023, a magnitude 6.3 quake followed by strong aftershocks left at least 4,000 people dead, according to the Taliban government.